Hollywood demands government help so it can keep ripping us off.

The leaked Online Copyright Infringement discussion paper, obtained last Friday by news website Crikey, is pretty much what we expected from Australia's federal government. The opening statement pays lip service to ensuring that "content is accessed easily and at a reasonable price". The rest is dedicated to outlining harsher penalties and technical countermeasures which are doomed to fail.

Advice from Google and others that piracy is primarily a "pricing and availability" problem has fallen on deaf ears, the government would rather listen to the likes of Village Roadshow.

It would be great to see Attorney-General George Brandis and Communications Minister Malcolm Turnbull jump to the defence of Australian consumers – whom they supposedly represent – as quickly as they jump to the defence of the powerful copyright lobby group. Advice from Google and others that piracy is primarily a "pricing and availability" issue has fallen on deaf ears, the government would rather listen to the likes of Village Roadshow.

The Online Copyright Infringement discussion paper feels like the work of a government which wants to be seen to be acting, rather than a government which actually wants to address the underlying problem. Where's the discussion paper considering the impact of this year's Foxtel Game of Thrones deal on consumer choice, or what might happen if Murdoch gains control over both HBO and Foxtel?